San'Shyuum (Earth-5875)
The san'shyuum (Latin Perfidia vermis, meaning "worms of treachery"), known by humans as Prophets, are a near-extinct sapient species from Janjur Qom, a planet that has been lost in all records. One of the two founding species of the Covenant, alongside the sangheili, the san'shyuum served as the effective political leaders of the hegemony in leadership positions as Hierarchs, ministers, and politicians. With their early civilization thriving on a world filled with forerunners, the san'shyuum came to revere the ancient species as gods, and entered in a long, bloody feud between the Reformists and the Stoics. The Reformists were the victors, and they were able to take the ''Dreadnought'', a Keyship that survived on their planet, and use it to explore the galaxy. Following the fall of High Charity by the xenomorphs, which killed majority of the san'shyuum population, less than a thousand are known to still exist. History The Ark and reseeding The san'shyuum evolved in the high-gravity world Janjur Qom, and were visited by the forerunners in the past, who left numerous artifacts on the planet. During the Forerunner-Xenomorph War, the Librarian and the Lifeworkers visited Janjur Qom as a part of the Conservation Measure to save san'shyuum specimens for the Ecumene, and index them in the Ark so they could survive the activation of the Halo Array. After the rings were lighted and all life extinct, the san'shyuum, alongside all remaining living species in the galaxy, were returned to their homeworld via Keyships, where they started rebuilding their culture. The last of the species to be reintroduced to their homeworld, the san'shyuum's Keyship, known as the ''Dreadnought'', was taken over by a fragment of Mendicant Bias, and instead of returning to the Ark, crash-landed on the Great Apothtea, on Janjur Qom. War of Wills and Reformists fighting for the control of the ''Dreadnought'' at the Great Apothtea.]] In their ancient past, the san'shyuum came to revere the forerunners as gods on their homeplanet Janjur Qom duo to the numerous artifacts they found. However, the populations became divided on how to deal with these items, and as such were divided in two factions, the Stoics and the Reformists. While the Stoics believed that the san'shyuum were not allowed to touch or tamper with forerunner artifacts, as they were "above them", the Reformists had more progressive views, and believed they should manipulate the technology to improve their species' lives. Such an ideological difference led to the War of Wills in 2200 BCE, seeing the victory of the Reformists, who took the forerunner Dreadnought left at Janjur Qom and settled for the stars. Not long after, the Reformist san'shyuum encountered several gas mines within the vicinity of their home system, where they made first contact with an intelligent alien species: the huragok. The Reformists soon noticed the docile nature of the huragok and took them as their slaves aboard the Dreadnought, where they maintained the ship and served san'shyuum families. War of Beginnings and the Covenant receiving the decapitated heads of their peace delegation upon first contact with the sangheili on Ulgethon.]] It wasn't until 938 BCE, the Reformists found the planet Ulgethon, where they encountered the sangheili, discovering the planet to be one of the species' colonies. Upon landing on the planet, they took notice of the abundance of forerunner artifacts that were left behind by the forerunners to study it. However, the sangheili also worshiped the forerunners as gods, and, unlike the Reformists, had divergent ideological views on the handling of the relics, which soon developed into the War of Beginnings in 938 BCE, when an Arbiter decapitated all members of a san'shyuum embassy, delivering their heads back to the Reformists. warriors engaging the san'shyuum aboard the Dreadnought.]] Much like the san'shyuum Stoics, the sangheili believed every forerunner relic to be sacred beyond measuring, and thus that they should not be touched or manipulated by lesser beings. The sangheili attacked the san'shyuum as soon as they could, and the War of Beginnings raged on for centuries. During the conflict, the sangheili had both a numeric and physical advantage. The military tactics of the sangheili surpassed that of the san'shyuum, and one sangheili warrior was worth ten san'shyuum soldiers, as they were much stronger and faster. However, the san'shyuum had more advanced technology, huragok that could repair and maintain their military technology, and control over the Dreadnought, which was able to tear down hundreds of sangheili warriors and ships. over Sanghelios, overseen by one of the first Hierarchs of the Covenant.]] As the war continued with no apparent end, both species came to fear ultimate annihilation on the two sides. The sangheili feared the Dreadnought and their possible extinction at its power, while the san'shyuum feared for their existence with their dwindling numbers and inability to sustain their females and children. The war became so devastating that the sangheili collectively agreed to abandon their own religious beliefs and study and incorporate forerunner technology to their arsenal to avoid total destruction. Such an act allowed the sangheili to go stalemate against the san'shyuum, but the Dreadnought still proved to be unstoppable, and so the sangheili unwillingly surrendered. Even in the past, sangheili held numerous beliefs related to honor and battles, and so they respected a worthy adversary. After the end of the war and the sangheili's surrender, the san'shyuum proposed an alliance between the two species. In 852 BCE, a truce between the two species, between the sangheili and san'shyuum leaders Pelahsar the Strident and High Lord Mken 'Scre'ah'ben, where both sides agreed to move on their past crimes against each and cooperate towards an alliance: the result was the ratification of the Writ of Union and the formation of the Covenant. For the next decades, the sangheili homeplanet Sanghelios served as the capital remained the center of the Covenant, as the two forces used their own engineering tactics and the huragok to build a mobile capital city for the alliance, ''High Charity''. While the sangheili served as warriors for the Covenant, the san'shyuum served as its religious and political leaders, effectively rising to control an interstellar empire encompassing thousands of worlds and trillions of individuals. First Contact War In January 2525, the then-Hierarchs Truth, Mercy and Lod Mron discovered humanity on the colony Shanxi, where Truth uncovered they were related to the forerunners in some way, and thus believed them to be forerunners that were left behind after the Great Journey. When he realized the revelation people could be left behind in the Journey, Truth concluded this would lead to the downfall of the Covenant. With the support of his fellow Hierarchs and the High Council, they declared a holy war against humanity, becoming known as the First Contact War. For the next twenty-eight years, the sangheili's control over the Covenant Armada led to distrust over them among the san'shyuum, mainly by the Prophet of Truth. Many high-ranking san'shyuum feared that the sangheili were questioning too much of the war, and would surely rebel against them if they discovered the truth about humanity. The san'shyuum sought to overthrown the sangheili, and the jiralhanae, who were more loyal and obedient, were slowly empowered by Truth and his closest allies to take the place of the sangheili. and the Prophet of Mercy discussing the discovery of Installation 05 with Arbiter Thel 'Vadam.]] In November 2552, after the Covenant retrieved the Sacred Icon of Installation 05, the Great Journey was closer than ever. After the Prophet of Regret was murdered by John-117 during the early Battle of Installation 05, Truth started to put his plan into action and ordered the massacre of the sangheili High Councilors in order to prevent the Council of electing another san'shyuum to replace Regret. This culminated into the massive civil war known as the Great Schism, effectively fragmenting the Covenant. The sangheili were forced to abandon the Covenant, declaring war against the san'shyuum and the jiralhanae by allying with humanity, the Covenant's long enemy. Matters were further complicated with the arrival of the xenomorphs from Installation 05's Quarantine Zone at High Charity, leading to a massive outbreak that killed millions of san'shyuum, and thus most of their population. Many san'shyuum had traveled to Installation 05 in order to witness the Great Journey, enabling them to avoid the xenomorphs. The firing of the Halo ring was averted with the combined forces of the sangheili and the humans, during which most Covenant forces in the Coelest system were either destroyed or retreated with the outbreak of the Schism and the xenomorphs' attack. With the Prophet of Truth's death in December 2552 at the hands of Arbiter Thel 'Vadam, the Covenant was effectively destroyed. With the outbreak of the xenomorphs on High Charity, the san'shyuum experienced an extinction-level event. Only the few san'shyuum who were either permanently or temporarely posted outside of the holy city survived the xenomorph attack, and the many who served aboard sangheili-led warships were murdered by the sangheili once they discovered their betrayal. While the species of the Covenant suffered billions of casualties during the First Contact War, it were in the last months of the war that one of its species, the san'shyuum, suffered the most lossess, with the current population of san'shyuum believed to be at less than a thousand. A large number of san'shyuum, however, were able to escape from High Charity aboard civilian vessels. The loss of the san'shyuum and the subsequent disappearance of most of the living members of the species and the huragok proved too much for the other Covenant species, who lost most of their capacity to produce technology from the two species, forcing warlords and fragmented worlds to fill the voids of leadership and technology once carried by the san'shyuum. Post-First Contact War Tem'Bhetek fighting against Tul 'Juran and Rtas 'Vadum aboard the ''Shadow of Intent''.]] With their population at incredibly low levels, and with the wrath and generalization of hate by many sangheili warlords and former commanders, the remaining san'shyuum that tried to lead their own Covenant splinter factions supplied their jiralhanae loyalists with all the technology they still had. The san'shyuum eventually vanished without a trace, much like the huragok, leading many sangheili to believe the san'shyuum went into a "Great Journey" of their own and took the huragok with them, although many disregarded this. By 2565, a very small number of san'shyuum were still encountered by many Covenant splinter factions, the Swords of Sanghelios and the UNSC through the Orion Arm of the galaxy. One of these san'shyuum was notably Alo Sebukah, found by the UNSC aboard a Type-31 Seraph in the orbit of Substance. He was subsequently brought to Midnight Facility, where he was tortured and interrogated by the Office of Naval Intelligence. In 2553, the san'shyuum Tem'Bhetek and Boru'a'Neem, a Prelate and the former Minister of Preparation, formed their own Covenant splinter faction, the Nomads of Retribution, bent on enacting their vengeance against the sangheili; the duo had departed from the san'shyuum fleet, amassing a large force of jiralhanae and yanme'e loyalists to their cause. They planned on using a bioweapon to erradicate the life on Sanghelios and the Urs-Field-Joori system. Their ploy was stopped by the crew of the ''CAS''-class assault carrier ''Shadow of Intent'' and its Shipmaster, Rtas 'Vadum, resulting in the destruction of the Nomads and the deaths of the san'shyuum. 'Vadum then learned of the fleet that managed to escape the Fall of High Charity, and, following the slipspace trajectories from the ship of the Nomads, Rtas sought to locate the san'shyuum in order to help them. Biology Anatomy and physiology The san'shyuum average 7' 1" (226 cms) to 7' 5" (226 cms), with an average weight of 179 lbs (81 kgs) to 212 lbs (96 kgs), being very gangly and possessing long, serpentine-like necks and limbs. Their skeletal structure is very frail compared to the other species of the Covenant and even humans, and as such, they are required to move slowly and with delicacy. They have elongated heads and salamandrine lips. Their slick skin changes its color with age, with adolescents and children having light brown skin, only for it to become greyer and paler as they reach old age, not unlike humans. San'Shyuum have sparse hair and fur that covers their body, although most of them shave their fur for their overtly public appearances. They have two large, amphibian-like eyes, which comes in many colors, from violet, brown, green, blue and white. Some san'shyuum have heterochromia iridum, meaning they have eyes with different eye colors. This is seen with superstition among the san'shyuum, who detonates that these particular individuals are members of an overbred genetic line. Young san'shyuum have shorter necks and prominent noses and chin that is closer to their eyes. San'Shyuum blood is red, and they differ from line to line. of the Prophet of Conviction.]] As the san'shyuum evolved on Janjur Qom, which was a low gravity planet, they have difficulty locomoting in higher-gravity planets and environments. Because most of the san'shyuum present within the Covenant are elderly, and duo to their sedentary lifestyle, most san'shyuum in the galaxy are weak and withered. Duo to their difficult in moving, higher-ranking san'shyuum use anti-gravity apparel, such as gravity thrones, in order to freely move without limitations. They are still capable of moving without external aid, but only for a small amount of time. San'Shyuum have beard-like lobes of skin covered with fur hanging from their chins, known as wattles. Once an individual reaches adulthood their wattle will become big enough in size to slump down their chins, which made younger san'shyuum rarely display these traits. Much like the wattles, san'shyuum have fleshy appendages hanging from both sides of their heads, similar to ears. Meanwhile, the actual ears of a san'shyuum are located on the back of their heads. San'Shyuum are tridactyly, having three digits on each of their hands, include a shorter thumb. Although they are unwilling to duo to their believed superiority, san'shyuum can use the weapons of the Covenant, with Hierarchs being typically equipped with personal Type-25 plasma pistols for their defense. Their feet are prehensile and digitigrade, each with three, backward-bent toes, meant to balance the weight of a san'shyuum. Duo to their sedentarism, the feet of the san'shyuum are atrophied and mostly useless, and as a result they have much difficulty when walking without anti-gravity technology, further complicated by lower gravity environments. Sex and life cycle , an example of an older san'shyuum.]] Female san'shyuum have a short and uncommon fertility cycle, which just occurs a long time between one another. During the fertility period, known as the Reproductive Yielding, the female san'shyuum will release a specific hormone that leads to male san'shyuum have a lustful desire for having sex with them. They give birth to live offspring, which is commonly a single child, although cases of twins and triplets are not uncommon. As a female san'shyuum age, they have more difficulty with getting pregnant. Because of the small population of fertile san'shyuum, and the small population of san'shyuum in general, their populational growth dwindled, and some recessive traits were passed down to each generation, despire the efforts of the san'shyuum society to safeguard "genetic purity" and prevent these traits from manifesting. Most of the idea of "pure" bloodlines come from the Reformists, who sought to keep them good as they determined one's identity and role for the rest of their lives, such as the renowned Sebalim'tet lineage. In the last centuries of the Covenant, the Ministry of Preparation used forerunner Lifeworker technology that was stored at the Sacred Promissory on High Charity to alter the genes of select san'shyuum. They became known as the Prelates, and were able to have sex with females without passing down their recessive traits to their offspring. San'Shyuum have an extensive lifespan duo to extensive medical research and technology that served to ensure their longevity, starting in 1552. As such, san'shyuum can live for hundreds of years, with more than a quarter of their current population being super-bicentenarians. As a san'shyuum age, their hair becomes sparse and white, while their skin becomes pale and numerous disorders, such as arthritis, start to appear. Elder Covenant san'shyuum used herbal medications every day. Culture Society escorting a Luminary to the Prophet of Regret aboard the ''Solemn Penance''.]] After their discovery of forerunner artifacts on Janjur Qom, the culture of the san'shyuum became centered around elderly and paraplegic religious leaders, who called themselves the voice of the forerunners. The san'shyuum are known to use stimulants such as hookah and herbal liquids. The san'shyuum rarely discussed about their culture with the other member species of the Covenant. Before the formation of the Covenant, the Reformists believed that taking over the Keyship known as the Dreadnought would guide them through the universe, and so they managed to take control over it during the War of Wills, leaving their enemies, the Stoics, behind. This became an effective death toll however, as the Reformists were comprised to only a few thousand of san'shyuum, forcing them to interbred with one another and then manage their gene pools in order prevent their beneficial genes from being lost, as well as from undesirable traits to be introducted. Male and female san'shyuum with negative recessive traits were placed in the Covenant's Roll of Celibates in order to prevent them from having sex and relationships, managed by strict and severe organizers that ensured the genetic diversity of the species was maintained. The Roll of Celibates was a severe matter, and not even the Hierarchs were free from its influence. If the san'shyuum's psyque proved to be too damaged, they would be allowed to have sex with a concubine. If there was a discovered case of pregnancy, the child would be aborted and the parents would be sterilized. Because the fertility cycle of female san'shyuum are rare and short, the san'shyuum had many difficulties in having children. When a child was born, a massive celebration always took place IN ''High Charity'' to commemorate their coming. The san'shyuum resort to name themselves by their titles, mainly Hierarch. Other titles include Minor Hierarch, who, while being subordinates of Hierarchs, still were held in high regard. These titles connotate their involvement with the religious and political issues within the Covenant. High Lord is an ancient san'shyuum title that existed before and during the early days of the Covenant. The caste system of the san'shyuum declares that those born of lower-casting lineages were destined to serve as Stewards. Role within the Covenant and Mercy, two san'shyuum Hierarchs.]] The san'shyuum were the ruling caste of the Covenant, effectively leading the empire politically and religiously. Within the Covenant, they were the only ones able to study holy forerunner artifacts, using them to develop new technologies, weapons, ships and installations for the Covenant, which they used to ensure their position. One hundred san'shyuum High Councilors composed the Covenant High Council alongside the sangheili High Councilors until the end of 2552. While frail and weak compared to the other member-species of the Covenant, the san'shyuum's power lied within their charismatic leadership and total control over all aspects of Covenant society, locating, studying, and incorporating forerunner technologies into their lives in order to fully grasp the entirety of the forerunner ascendancy into the Great Journey. The entire structure and working of the Covenant depended on the expactation that the san'shyuum were chosen by the forerunners to lead the other species into transdendance. Although both the san'shyuum and the sangheili founded and ruled the Covenant, the san'shyuum had more power within the empire. Despite this, the two species uneasy coexisted for the millenia of the Covenant, united merely by their faith in the Path, with several political infighting happening behind the scenes. alongside sangheili High Councilors at the Covenant High Council, ''High Charity''.]] Through its entire existence, the Covenant was ruled by a triumvirate of san'shyuum Hierarchs, who effectively led and dictated everything at the High Council despite the equal representation of san'shyuum and sangheili within the legislature. Under the Hierarchs, the High Councilors were the second most important positions for a san'shyuum, and they determined the daily lives of Covenant citizens, including the passing of laws. Ministers ruled the many ministires of the Covenant's executive powers, with Vice Ministers serving below them, either as assistants or replacements if the Minister was unable to be present a session at the High Councilors. Each ministry had their own san'shyuum senior and junior staffers. While for most part of the Covenant's history the san'shyuum only served as politicians, early on the hegemony's history they had active roles in the Covenant Armada, where they served as ship captains and gunners. With time, the sangheili took complete control of the Armada, only ever asnwering to san'shyuum of a fleet's Council of Masters. As representatives of the forerunners themselves, the san'shyuum exerted complete control over the other member-species of the Covenant, who called them "Holy Ones" and "Eminence", being protected by legions of Honor Guardsmen who defended their san'shyuum masters with their lives. The san'shyuum rarely involved themselves in combat, making them the only non-combatant Covenant species to humanity alongside the huragok during the First Contact War, although they would attempt to defend themselves in any case of aggression. Important engagements saw the deployment of heavily guarded san'shyuum duo to the necessity of studying sites or discussing political matters in their campaign against the humans. The architecture and aesthetics of the Covenant, from weapons, to vehicles and ships were san'shyuum in nature, with the sangheili architecture and style serving to supplement it. Religion and spirituality worshiping forerunner relics.]] The ancient religions of the san'shyuum held the belief that the forerunners artifacts present on Janjur Qom were holy in nature, and that the mere study and tampering with them was considered a heresy beyond measure. However, a select sect of san'shyuum started to study the ''Dreadnought'', the source of the san'shyuum early faith, present at the Great Apothtea. This led to a major rift between the species between 2200 and 2100 BCE, in the form of the massive civil war known as the War of Wills, forming two diverging factions: the Reformists, who believed they should manipulate forerunner technology, and the Stoics, who believed they should not. The Reformists were the victors, and were able to board and use the Dreadnought to escape Janjur Qom. For the next centuries, the Reformist san'shyuum had many achievements, including the formation of the Covenant alongside the sangheili, where they evolved their beliefs and faith, which eventually became the Path. As the establishers of their empire and the Writ of Union, the san'shyuum deemed themselves the "voice of the gods". The Path is derived from the many documents stored aboard the Dreadnought, albeit in a heavily misunderstood translation; among the erroneous interpretations were the belief that the firing of the Halo Array were a path of the transdence, a process they termed the Great Journey, believing that the forerunners used the Halos to initiate the first Great Journey and transcend to a plane of existence known as the "Divine Beyond", leading them to godhood. The Path was the main focus of the Covenant above all, and its species were united out of the cooperation and faith that they would find the "Sacred Rings" to initiate the Great Journey and become gods themselves in a better plane of existence, although some species were not as religiously motivated. Some san'shyuum practiced asceticism, a form of worship of forerunners led by a Philologist, where humility was shown towards holy artifacts. The Philologist would insert a lekgolo into the systems of the Dreadnought on the center of ''High Charity'' in order to gain knowledge from the vessel and the Oracle that inhabited it. Fashion and dress in the 22nd century.]] San'Shyuum place a heavy emphasis on fashion, generally dressing themselves in flashy and colored robes made of filigreed. The robes' color and complexity very much vary depending on its user, ranging from scarlet, blue, purple, red, purple, and pink. The colors and desgigns themselves represent interlinked star systems. During the War of Beginnings, high-ranking san'shyuum used adornments which hid body armor beneath them. Many san'shyuum uses jewellry on their appendages, mostly indicating they are single and had not commited to marriage, a practice mostly popular with males. Most current san'shyuum use gravity thrones in order to support themselves in environments duo to their frail bodies and the higher gravity of their homeworld. The thrones of the Hierarchs are fielded with energy shields, holographic emitters, short-ranged teleporation systems, and assault cannons, the latter which they employ against would-be-assassins getting past their Honor Guards. The thrones are not only weapons of war, but tools of luxury, giving its users comfort and a sign of authority. High-ranking san'shyuum used complex crowns with multiple different designs depending on its user, which possessed small holographic displays of a Halo ring on them. Language The san'shyuum native language is called Niä, and is comprised of non-verbal communication, signaled by hand and head gestures that convey accents, emotions and phrases, something mostly not understood by the other species. While they were the highest in the caste of the Covenant, the san'shyuum language was not the lingua franca of the Covenant, which was instead the sangheili's Digom, which they are able to speak fluently. San'Shyuum can also speak imperfect human English, relaying the first contact between the Covenant and the UNSC in the human language. Homeworld Janjur Qom was the homeworld of the san'shyuum, having an atmosphere similar to that of Earth and Sanghelios. It had only one natural satellite, Plaon. The Reformists claimed to the Covenant that Janjur Qom had been destroyed in 648 BCE after its star went supernova. This claim, however, is heavily dispusted by the sangheili, who believed the san'shyuum were hiding the location of their homeworld from the rest of the Covenant. Technology The san'shyuum developed their technology by observing and reverse-engineering forerunner relics and artifacts, creating technologies such as the Eyes, gravity thrones, energy shields and pulse weapons, all developed by the Reformists. The Stoics, however, did not develop much technology, fearing it would lead to the wrath of the forerunners, keeping as a Tier 5 species by 850 BCE. , the starting point for the development of san'shyuum technology.]] In the Covenant, the san'shyuum hibridized their technology with that of the sangheili and the other species that were soon converted into it, advancing the hegemony to Tier 2 status. As the Covenant expanded through the Orion Arm of the Milky Way galaxy, the san'shyuum discovered new forerunner technology to further advance the Covenant. Most of the technoligies provided to the Covenant can trace their origins to the ''Dreadnought'', the Keyship taken by the san'shyuum from Janjur Qom, whose terminals and workings were deciphered by the huragok. These advancements included the discovery of slipspace travel, communication, the manipulation of plasma for weaponry, the discovery and limited use of hard light, teleporation of matter, and anti-gravity technology. This effectively made the san'shyuum responsible for most of the technology supplied to the Covenant with the help of the huragok, making the two species all that the sangheili and the other species had to rely for the development of newer items. The Ministry of Fortitude, one odf the bodies of the Covenant, was charged to share technology with the rest of the Covenant species. The san'shyuum placed several technology limitations and restrictions within the Covenant, such as the disallowing of sangheili from using assault harnesses and the jiralhanae and other species from using energy shields. Category:Earth-5875 Category:Sapient species of Earth-5875 Category:Species of Earth-5875 Category:Host species (Earth-5875) Category:Covenant species (Earth-5875) Category:San'Shyuum of Earth-5875 Category:Species Category:Races Category:Created by Draft227